Fully fit Marquez turns focus to latest 2020 Honda RC213V evolution

While Marc Marquez no longer has to worry so much about the troublesome shoulder injury that left him in a fitness race just days before the start of the original 2020 MotoGP season, this weekend’s delayed Spanish MotoGP still represents a relative unknown for the defending champion.

His shoulder complaints aside, Marquez struggled to find his form on the 2020 specification Honda RC213V with all three current-spec riders struggling for stability under braking and front-end through the corners.

As such, Honda quickly pulled together a ‘hybrid’ amalgamation of 2019 and 2020 parts to try on the final day of testing in Qatar, believing at the time to have found a breakthrough.

Though the ensuing long break means Honda has had fair time to delve into the data, Marquez says it wasn’t enough to substitute physical data as he hit the track running during today’s pre-season one-day test.

Third quickest behind Maverick Vinales and Fabio Quartararo, though Marquez says there is still plenty of work to be done on the RC213V, he has praised his engineers for attempting to ‘fix the problem’.

“At the moment it is an evolution [of 2019 and 2020]. It isn’t exactly the same swingarm for example, it is not the same engine. In Jerez we have some new items to try that we didn’t have time, but maybe we will try Jerez I or Jerez II depending on track and condition

“[The engineers] did a few steps, but they are more than a few steps – they tried to fix the problem. There are more problems than we have in the winter time but the thing you need to improve the bike you need to ride and ride on a good lap time, pushing on the limit.

“The good news is most riders have the same problems, so they are working on it and now we need to work hard on this area because in 2021 we will have the same engine.”

Heading into the 2020 campaign looking to make it seven MotoGP World Championship titles in just eight seasons, Marquez says he is not completely over his shoulder issues but says they no longer concern him.

“Today I was especially concentrating on myself. First of all because in the winter time we suffer a lot on the technical and physical side. Today I was not worried but now I can breathe because on the physical side I feel fit. Of course, I feel something on the shoulder from where I’ve stopped practice but riding the bike is not a problem.”